Several different general types of refuse collection vehicles are commonly used in collecting refuse. Front-end loading refuse collection vehicles, or ‘front loader vehicles’, are generally used for collecting refuse from larger or commercial sites, such as office buildings, schools, shops, factories, hospitals, etc. In this type of operation, the refuse is collected in a large bin, which is then emptied by the front loader vehicle. The vehicle is equipped towards its front end with a hydraulically-driven lifting mechanism, comprising lifting arms and fork arms. The vehicle driver/operator positions the vehicle with the bin positioned forwardly of the vehicle cabin, adjusts the separation of the fork arms (if applicable) to accommodate the bin width, manoeuvres the vehicle to engage the fork arms with the bin by way of fork slots or pockets provided in the outer side walls of the bin, and then raises the lifting arms. This lifts the bin from and over the front of the vehicle, thus bringing the bin to a generally inverted position over a top opening of the refuse storage body of the vehicle, and so dumping the contents therein. The bin is then returned by lowering to the ground in a reverse operation to the raising operation, and the fork arms withdrawn from the bin fork slots. The operation generally involves control of both the lifting arms and the fork arms, and the control can be wholly manual, or can be semi-automatic.
The refuse, once dumped in the vehicle storage body, can then be compacted by movement of an internal compacting mechanism that reciprocates to push the refuse rearwardly, to provide room for the next bin load. Once the vehicle is filled, it is driven to a dump site and unloaded, generally through opening a tailgate of the storage body and operating the compacting mechanism to drive the contents in a rearward direction.
The movement of a bin lifting mechanism, and in particular a front loader lifting mechanism, can be a relatively complex and sometimes dangerous operation, particularly for any person or object in the vicinity. Front loader bins are large and heavy, and the operator needs to very carefully observe and control the bin's movement through both lifting and lowering, to ensure the operation is progressing satisfactorily, and to avoid any interference between the moving assembly and any other objects in the vicinity. This can mean that during operation the operator's attention is focused on the bins rather than on the surrounding environment. There is a very real danger of accidental injury to a person who may pass in front of the vehicle during the bin lowering operation, and indeed such accidents have happened in recent years.